It's Never Just a Dream Is it?
by AngeloftheMorning1978
Summary: The Team thinks they have finally found peace when Hecate attacks on Robert Fischer's orders. The 6th in my story after "Dream, Bliss,Dream a Little Bigger Darling, Dream On and a Simple Little Idea." I promise LOTS of A&A. Trust me.
1. Chapter 1

It's Never Just a Dream... Is it?

_** Like I said, I just cant let them be happy. Not for long anyway. In truth, I'm not ready to let them go. Especially Sybil. Since I created Sybil, I'm not going to. Thank you all so much for the very kind reviews. You are what is truly keeping this story going. First lets review the characters and their meanings. I always thought it was interesting that Nolan had his characters names all mean something. I've tried to do the same.**_

**Cobb**- The Extractor, pronounced phonetically, Kwab, it mean "dream" in several languages. His wife's name, Mal, is Latin for "Bad" like in malcontent or malicious.

**Arthur**- The Point Man, King Arthur was a brave knight of legend. Always putting his people before himself. Many myths have King Arthur in an enchanted sleep, where he will awaken when needed.

**Ariadne**- The Architect, The Mistress of the Maze in Greek mythology. Ariadne aided the hero Theseus to navigate the labyrinth

**Eames**- The Forger, named after a couple named Charles and Ray Eames who were notable architects.

**Saito**- The Businessman, Saito is the tenth most common name for a man in Japan. It appears in many Japanese folk lore.

**Yori**- The Doctor, Saito's wife. Pronounced like "Lori", a type of Japanese writing that links a word.

**Sybil**- The Control/The Girl, The ancient Greek word Sibylla, meaning prophetess. There are many Sybils in ancient Greek myths.

**Hecate**- The Chemist, The goddess of black magic and witchcraft. Also of the crossroads. She is often interpreted as a death and vengeance goddess.

**Braker**- The Australian Forger, Broken. He was also called the Devil in the last story. The Devil being a angel who fell from grace and now spends all his time trying to lure people into hell. He may be dead in the waking world, but Mal was also dead and we saw how much trouble she caused.

**Robert Fischer**- The Young Businessman/ The Mark, Bobby Fischer was the great chess champion, known for his end game.

**Saint Cloud, France**

The Team had returned to where they started.

Arthur and Ariadne had brought their son home to the country where they had first met. Arthur had bought a large comfortable home for his family in town close to Paris. This way, Ariadne could still go to the college in the great city, and have a house large enough that all of the Team could stay with them at once. She had been unsure where her husband was taking them once they left Rome. But Arthur only smiled and allowed it to be a surprise. She had been very pleased by his taste in real estate. It was a charming home with seven bedrooms, set on a large plot of land. The Point Man had added a tall stone wall around the property with state of the art surveillance. All of which, were unseen by the untrained eye.

Alexander was a happy baby. He thrived, despite the tragic events of his early birth. His Mother was doting, his Father was proud. He had an extended family who would be there for him.

Seeing her son's face for the first time had give Ariadne the catharsis to wholly forget the Children with no faces from Limbo. To forget their names. Seeing Alexander, she forgave Braker for everything. He had been lost. She stilled missed the friend he had been, and that was how she chose to remember him.

Sybil had decided to accept Ariadne's invitation to live with them and finish school in France. In the mornings, she was at school. In the evenings, she was home to help with the baby. She was on track to be a very young graduate at only sixteen. Saito had promised her that if she graduated with top honors, he would buy her whatever car she wanted and pay for her schooling. The Girl accepted the Businessman's challenge. She wasn't sure what she wanted to study. Her talents were unlike anyone else in the Team.

As an unexpected consequence of Sybil staying with them, Eames was a frequent house guest. Ariadne put him up in her trendy Paris apartment since it had sat vacant for 3 years.

Saito and Yori had made the trip to Rome to see Ariadne and Arthur's son. Shin was already walking. Satio and Yori hadn't recognized Sybil at first and the Businessman was shocked to see the transformation of the Girl. Saito had Ariadne's sail boat "The Minotaur" especially shipped from Japan to a nearby French harbor as a congratulations gift on the birth of her son.

Cobb and Hecate returned with the Children to the States. Hecate had made Cobb promise to return to France by Bastille Day* to see their friends again.

Those first four months after the birth of his son had been a happy time. The happiest time of Arthur's life.

**July 14th, Bastille Day. Saint Cloud, France**

It was idyllic community near Paris. Loaded with all the charm one expects of France. Cobb, Hecate and the Children, had flown in privately from the States the day before and Eames would be down later in the afternoon. The storming of the Bastille was a holiday the French took very seriously. The French flag was draped over every elegantly styled building and hoards of people had descended the county for the celebrations.

"Ariadne." Hecate said holding Alexander, her accent was back to American. "The house looks beautiful." The Chemist was in the parlor of the large home that had recently been remodeled to exposed it's old world charm. From the kitchen, Ariadne and Sybil worked on the dinner they would have with their friends.

"Thank you, I couldn't believe Arthur bought a house for us without even asking me, but he did good." The Architect conceded.

She looked out the tall windows to see James and Phillipa playing contentedly in the back garden. She couldn't help but remember Cobb's dream of them. In almost the same positions, crouched down in the grass, their faces turned away. Only they were real this time. They were growing up. Phillipa would be eleven soon and James would turn eight before Christmas. The Architect was sad suddenly that their Mother could not be here to see her Children grow up. She felt sad also for the Children, that they had lost their Mother. That they may not remember her one day. She sighed and was pleased that at least Cobb had found someone like Hecate to be in their lives.

"I thought Saito and Yori would be here." Hecate said placing Alexander in the stylish bassinet Ariadne kept in the parlor. The baby slept peacefully.

"I thought so to." Ariadne said sadly. "Saito had to work. He said he would call." A small ding went off and Sybil went to a tiny closet near the kitchen. She opened the door to reveal a series of small T.V.s with black and white videos of the property. The intricate security system Arthur had installed.

"Eames is here." Sybil said buzzing the front gate for the Forger to drive up.

"Good." Hecate said with a smile.

The men had escaped from the women and children to Arthur's privet office. Why Arthur thought he needed an office Eames wasn't sure. It it was a pleasantly masculine room with comfortable furniture, a grand view and away from the noise. Arthur had his collection of original paintings shipped all the way from his apartment in New York and adorned them in his office. His wife wouldn't allow them in the family friendly home. She claimed that post war art was to creepy.

"So how is Fatherhood?" Cobb asked the Point Man. Arthur had to laugh.

"Exhausting." He said. "But nice. Ariadne plans to return to school in the fall so I guess I'll have more time with him."

"Excellent, I'm sure our girl always wanted a house husband." Eames teased.

Outside the office, the men never heard Hecate dragging Sybil and Ariadne's bodies to the garage. She placed each woman in the fine luxury car Arthur owned. She disabled the GPS tracking before going back inside for the Forger and Extractor. She reloaded the small tranquillizer gun with the sedative darts. Outside in the back garden, James and Phillipa still played. They had not seen the Chemist take out both women. Alexander slept silently in the bassinet. Hecate turned off the stove burners in the kitchen before she went in search of the men.

** I always thought of Emily Browning as Sybil. I know she is older now, but in "A Series of Unfortunate Events". I think she looks a lot like Ellen Paige. **

***Bastille Day, the storming of the French fortress and prison that is celebrated as the French Independence Day.**


	2. Chapter 2

The Beast

"_And what rough beast, its hour come round at last,"_

_ Yeats, 'The Second Coming'_

_ "_Like lambs to the slaughter." That was how Arthur saw it afterwords. He had been totally unprepared for Hecate's attack. Every time he thought of it, a sick bile would rise in his throat. In the calm safety of his own home, surrounded by close friends. He never saw it coming.

The men had been talking amongst themselves for some time while awaiting the call to dinner.

"Bloody Hell," Eames had exclaimed "I'm starving. I'm going to see what's taking so long." After he left The Extractor and Point Man talked for a while about Fatherhood and all it's... complications.

"Let me ask you something..." Arthur said to his long time friend. Without the Forger around, he knew he would be taken seriously.

"Shoot." Cobb said

"After the Phillipa was born, how long did it take you and Mal to... _be together_ again?" Arthur asked. Cobb chuckled involuntarily.

"I think it's different for everyone, Arthur." The Extractor told him. "It only took us a few months, but don't be mad at Ariadne if it takes her longer. She's been though a lot."

"I'm not the one pushing it." Arthur confessed. Cobb muffled a smile behind his drink. The Point Man shook his head.

"The shooting, the surgery, not even mentioning the birth." Arthur sighed. "I'm _terrified_ of hurting her."

"Arthur, she knows her body better then you do." Cobb said in an older brother tone. "If she thinks she is ready, then she is." Cobb looked at his friend. "Is it the scars or something?" The Extractor asked. Arthur shook his head.

"No, we had a plastic surgeon come in, while we were in Rome. The gun shot wound looks like nothing at all, The doctors who did the c-section did a good job." Arthur told him. He normally would not have cared about scars on her. He knew however, that the potential scar from the shooting would be like a brand. Each time he saw it, he would be reminded of what Braker had done. Ariadne had agreed. A top plastic surgeon was brought in, and a simple procedure was done. The Point Man sighed.

"I'm not sure what it is." He confessed.

"It will come back to the both of you." Cobb assured him. "Having a newborn around doesn't exactly set the mood." Arthur chuckled.

There was a knock on the door.

"Come in." Arthur called. Hecate entered the room, a casual smile on her face.  
>"Dinner is almost ready." She told them.<p>

Something was off. Arthur wasn't sure what. His intuition was prickling him. Something had changed. He looked hard at Hecate. Her breathing was faster then normal, but only slightly. She had left the door open and he could hear nothing from the parlor or other rooms. No footfalls on the hard wood floors. No rattling of dishes. No talking. Nothing at all. He saw Hecate's move before the Extractor and was on her before Cobb had realized what was happening.

She had pulled a menacing looking firearm complete with silencer from a hidden back holster and fired. All of Arthur's training kicked in as he grabbed her hand and pushed her arms away from her line of fire. The bullet missing him by seconds and inches as it cut a deep and silent gash in the nearby bookcase. Cobb was on his feet as Arthur tried to pull Hecate down. She was suddenly strong and skilled. She quickly freed herself from the Point Man and hit him with the butt of her gun. Arthur felt his nose break and his vision blur. The pain made him fall back as he heard Cobb shouting and sounds of a fight. Arthur willed himself up in time to see Hecate shoot the Extractor.

She was about to raise the deadly weapon again when Arthur attacked. He was not prepared for how well trained she was. Better then him. Her movements were fluid, graceful. Their fight felt more like a dance. He had managed to knock her down momentarily when thoughts of the others in the house gave him pause.

There was a reason the house was quite. The knowledge that they may be dead pounded in his brain as Hecate attacked him again. She shot two more times. The silencer casting a hiss and pop as it made contact with the wall. She was between him and the desk where he kept his spare fire arm, he had no choice but to leave the Extractor an get to another weapon he had stashed. It was a short run to the security closet where he had hidden another weapon.

The Parlor was empty. He could not help but stop and see his son, safe and sleeping in the bassinet. James and Phillipa were still outside. Oblivious to the turmoil in the house. He had barely freeed his weapon when Hecate was there, like a terrible demon. She shot again and missed. This time Arthur was ready.

He raised his weapon and shot. A loud bang emitted. A puff of pink flew off The Chemist's arm, making her stop her attack. She clutched her arm and almost dropped her weapon. Before he had time to shoot, another bang come from his office.

Cobb had managed to get up and defend himself from his own lover's attack. The second shot only clipped the deadly woman. Hecate fled. She was fast. Faster then anyone could have guessed. Alexander was awake now from the noise and started screaming. James and Phillipa had heard the shots as well and, instinctively, had run out of the back garden to a neighbor. It was this pause, while Arthur checked on their charges, Hecate was able to get away.

In Arthur's own car, she pulled roughly out of the drive. Arthur gave chase on foot. He was about to raise his weapon again when he saw the passengers. Ariadne and Sybil were in the back. Eames in the passenger side. All of them looking like they were sleeping. He lowered his weapon, Hecate sped off, to fast for him to give chase. Police sirens were in the distance.

Arthur ran back into the house. Cobb was slumped in the hall. He was pale and bleeding heavily. Alexander was still screaming loudly. The baby had to wait. His mind told him. He had to attend to Cobb's very serious wounds. From a first aide kit, the Point Man cut away the Extractor's shirt and pressed a firm hold on Cobb's wound. The Extractor winced in pain.

"What happened?" He asked

"Hecate took them." Arthur replied. "Ariadne, Eames, even Sybil."

"Oh God." Cobb breathed. "What have I done?"

Arthur said nothing as he continued the pressure. His son screamed angrily from the parlor as his Father awaited the sirens to finally reach them.


	3. Chapter 3

Don't Think About Elephants

"_You can flee with your wounds just in time,_

_Or lie there as he feeds._

_Watching yourself ripped to shreds,_

_Laughing as you bleed._

_So for those of you falling in love,_

_Keep it kind. Keep it good. Keep it right._

_Throw yourself in the midst of danger,_

_But keep one eye open at night."_

_Rachael Yamagata, Elephants_

Darkness has fallen on the charming little home. The Police and paramedics had brazenly parked their euro vehicles all over the front grass. The house was lit up as Police rudely trespassed through each room. Exploring the lives of the Americans who lived there.

"Just pop it back in." Arthur told the paramedic. She was assessing his still throbbing nose. She had managed to clean up his face but refused to fix the brake.

"We need to go to the hospital, Monsieur." The young woman said.

"Just pop it back in." The Point Man told her curtly.

"Let me see." came the voice of one of the detectives. He was a kindly looking man. In his mid fifties. Arthur remained seated as he gently and with clever careful hands, pulled and popped the broken nose back into place. Arthur winced hard and wiped away a fresh stream of blood. His nose already felt better.

"Thank you." the Point Man said. The nice little man smiled and looked at him.

"You may not recall, Monsieur." He said "We have spoken before. The first time the young lady was lost." Recognition dawned on the Point Man. This was the congenial little police office from Ariadne's apartment in Paris. He had been the one to tell Arthur about his Ariadne being stolen by COBAL. He had met the man only once, but he was glad to see him again.

"Yes, I remember." The Point Man said. "Your a Detective now." He stated. The little man nodded and gave a shrug.

"You stay any place long enough, they promote you. Detective Astucieux*." He said offering his hand to Arthur. The Point Man shook it, and the detective began his casual questions.

"The Lady is your wife now?"

"Yes." Arthur told him  
>"And you have the babe as well." He added writing it down in a small little notebook. Arthur nodded at the Paramedic who rocking his son with capable hands."The people who took her last time, do you think they could be involved?" The Detective asked.<p>

"I don't think so." Arthur told him honestly.

"Who took her last time?" The Detective asked.

"An old boyfriend." Arthur said believably

Cobb was awaiting the paramedics to take him to the hospital. His vitals were good and the bleeding was under control. Hecate had not intend to kill him. Her precise shot was meant to wound. Still, he looked like a broken man. His face was drawn and gray. Arthur leaped to his feet and went to his friends side

"I'm so sorry Arthur." Cobb said sadly. "I brought this down on us." Arthur shook his head

"We can't worry about that now, Dom." The Point Man told his friend. Arthur never used the Extractor's first name. "Listen, James and Phillipa are fine. Your gonna get out in a few hours and be back here." Arthur said. Cobb didn't seem to even be listening. The Extractor was rolled away to a waiting ambulance. Arthur had only seen Cobb like this once before, after Mal's death.

Now was not the time to lose the Extractor. Arthur knew he couldn't do this alone. Saito and Yori were on their way in from Japan but they were still ten hours away. Detective Astuciex guided the Point Man back into the Parlor to ask more questions.

"Monsieur, you said you knew the woman responsible?" The Detective asked.

"Yes, her name was Hecate. She was a former employee of COBAL engineering." Arthur told him. With the Police arriving so quickly, Arthur and Cobb knew there was some things they could not hide. The men never breathed a word of dream extractions as they were questioned.

"A woman, acting alone, took three people against their will and fought the both of you?" Astuciex asked, looking doubtful.

"She was armed." Arthur told him feeling the guilt sharply over Hecate's preemptive attack. "She shot my friend and she shot at me, and my son... MY SON WAS FOUR FEET AWAY!" He suddenly found himself yelling. The fact that Alexander was in the room at the time of the shooting gave new weight to the situation. Hecate had touched on something sacred.

Astuciex raised his hands up in surrender, trying to calm the Point Man down. Attempting to sympathize with the full horror of what was happening.

"Monsieur, we can do nothing if you do not help us." The Detective told him "Do you have any idea, any idea at all where she may have taken them?"

"No." Arthur told him trying to calm down.

"You say, along with your wife a Mr. Eames was taken. He is a friend?"

"Coworker, and yes a friend." Arthur told him. The Detective looked around the fine home.  
>"What is it exactly do you do for a living, Monsieur?" Astucieux asked. Arthur sighed deeply. He didn't want to answer questions. He wanted to hunt down Hecate and bring his wife home.<p>

"I work in international information retrieval and trade for global fortune 500 companies." The Point Man said. Astucieux looked at him. Processing the information. Not understanding that Arthur had actually told him the truth about his profession.

"And this teenage girl, who was living with you and your wife." The Detective asked

"Sybil." Arthur told him. "My wife's younger sister." Astucieux nodded and wrote down the girls name.

"We were not able to find any relatives of Lady when she went missing the first time." The Detective commented

"She was in boarding school, in the States." Arthur lied easily. The Detective nodded. He waited patiently for Arthur to add more information. Arthur didn't take the bait. He was grateful that Saito had used his power to create fake ID's for Sybil. Having Sybil pose as a relative of a Team member made things much easier, neater.

"Monsieur, is there some place you can go with the babe tonight? Some place you can take the two young Children?" The Detective asked.  
>"I can get a hotel." Arthur said sadly. Astucieux nodded.<p>

"I'm so sorry for what has happened Monsieur, we will do everything we can to get the Lady back." Arthur believed him. The kindly little man had sympathy for the young family.

In a refined hotel suit in Paris, Arthur watched dawn break over the city of lights. He had not been able to sleep.

James and Phillipa were sleeping peacefully in the next room. The events of the day had worn their spirits out. It disturbed Arthur that they heard the gun shots. He was grateful that Phillipa had taken herself and her brother away. Still, all the violence over the past year they had been witness to. All the sudden moves. It could not be good for them.

Alexander was sleeping a peaceful sleep in a travel crib next to the king sized bed. It felt odd to be suddenly responsible for so many young lives. He had relied on the strong network of the Team in the past. With Cobb in the hospital, and Saito still in the air, it all fell on him. He looked at his son sleeping. He now understood Cobb's intense need to get back to his own Children. They were all the Extractor had left of Mal. Just like right now, Alexander was all the Point Man had left of the Architect. A powerful instinctual pull made him cherish their baby even more.

Arthur closed his eyes and tried to sleep. He needed to. Saito and Yori were landing in five hours. He would meet them at the hospital. His thoughts were on his wife. He wanted to touch her. Her skin, so soft and yielding under his hands. Her lips, being claimed by his own, surrendering.

_A few days ago..._

She had just put Alexander back to bed from his late night feeding. They had not taken turns simply because she always popped out of bed before he had a chance to. She quickly changed the baby and brought him into their room for his feeding. Because of the shooting and subsequent pain medications, she had not been able to breast feed him. It was something she had been upset about, but they shared in the bonding that came with both being able to feed their son without worry.

She had put the baby back to bed and came back in, climbing in bed next to Arthur. She molded her body around his, kissed him. She kissed him again, pulling him on top of her. Her hips rolling up to meet his own. He stopped.

"What is it?" Ariadne asked

"I don't want to hurt you." He had said. She smiled and pulled his mouth down on hers.

"You wont." She said. They kissed hotly for a long time, him fighting his own arousal. Motherhood had made her so beautiful, Her breast were still swollen. Her body, much softer to his touch. Still, they had not made love since the birth of their son. She had almost died a few months ago, her body might brake under the intensity.

There were things he desperately wanted to do to her. Things he would have done to her if she were not the mother of his son. He wanted to hold her body down, claim her, bring her to climax under his power. He was ashamed to admit that he wanted to treat his wife like a whore in their bed. He had not interest in 'making love', he only wanted a savage physical part himself with her. All of these things, he couldn't do to the woman who had born his child. There was something sacred and pure about her now. It was bliss and agony all at once.

"I'm healed now." She told him, kissing his neck. Her hot breath on him, making it harder to resist her.  
>"I just... with the shooting... I..." He had stammered. "The baby being born." He tried to explain<p>

"You don't find me attractive anymore?" She asked sadly. "Because of the baby? Because of the shooting?"

"No." He tried to assure her quickly. The scares were barely noticeable. The surgeon who delivered Alexander had done a very good job. Her body had easily recovered from the ordeal. The plastic surgeon had expertly concealed the gun shot wound to nothing more then an angry red line that would soon vanish.

Not believing him, she turned her back to him then. He tried to explain, but she wouldn't listen. He knew she had cried a little then. He tried to hold her in his arms, to be her husband to her. To be a man with her, but the pain he had caused that night had hurt her deeply.

Alexander cooed softly in his sleep and brought his Father back around from his painful memory. Ever attentive, the Point Man waited to see if the baby would wake. He made a promise to his son then, he would bring his mother home.

In the morning, Saito and Yori arrived. They met Arthur at the hotel and the Doctor had brought with her not only Shin but Shin's nanny. The women quickly took charge of the children, Arthur relived to have someone he trusted around him and his son again. Saito and the Point Man left them at the hotel while they went to pick Cobb up from the hospital.

Cobb's wound was not mortal. But Hecate's betrayal had hurt him more then any bullet would have. The Extractor was ready to leave as soon as his now broken team arrived.

"Any leads?" Cobb asked walking under his own power out to the waiting car.  
>"None." Arthur told him. The Point Man explained about Detective Astuciex.<p>

"I have my own security on them as well." Saito said "We found her once, we will find her again." The Businessman told Arthur.

"We need to call in the Australians." Cobb told them

"No." Arthur said his eyes widening. What was Cobb thinking?  
>"The Australians are our best allies." Cobb explained "Hecate..." He paused at her name. "What she did, she did to them to. Braker lost his mind because of her compound."<p>

"Cobb, no." Arthur told his friend. The Extractor turned on the Point Man then.

"I brought this woman into our lives. She shared my home, my bed. I trusted her with my Children. This is _my_ fault."

"Mr. Cobb?" Saito said tonelessly "We do not have the luxury of blame." Arthur nodded.

"We can't fall apart now." He agreed.

_*Astucieux: A French word for clever_


	4. Chapter 4

Karma & Gravity

"_Like gravity, Karma is so basic we often don't even notice it." _

_Sakyong Mipham_

"Darling?" Came Eames voice. Ariadne snapped awake. Her body hurt. A subtle pain where Braker had shot her, that was present only after a hard sleep. She felt uncomfortable. What had happened? She was sitting in a chair. Her hands were bound with hospital restraints in front of her. The restraints lashed to the floor. She looked to her right. Eames was awake and in the same predicament. He grinned at her.

"I just want one summer where I'm not kidnapped and chained up by some woman." He teased. The gentle joke made Ariadne pause. She looked to her left at Sybil. The Girl was starting to wake up now.

"What happened?" The Architect asked.  
>"Not sure." Eames said softly. His voice now serious. "Last I remember I was out looking for you."<p>

"It was Hecate." Sybil said surfacing from her sleep. "She shot you then me."

"What?" Ariadne breathed out. She couldn't believe this. Hecate had been with the Team for over a year now. They trusted her.  
>"Are you sure Little One?" Eames asked<p>

"I guess we'll know for sure in a while." Sybil retorted. "I told you we couldn't trust her."

"Cobb said we could." Ariadne said defensively

"He trusted Mal once to." Eames added. Ariadne shook her head. Hecate was at her wedding, she had shared their dreams as well as their lives. That woman held her son. Looked after Cobb's Children.

"How...?" She started to ask when the clang of a heavy metal door opened. A well dressed young man casually stepped into the light. He had a fine, graceful manner. His body language gave away the fact he was unaccustomed to being around people. He stood well away from Ariadne and the others, but also away from Hecate who followed him.

"_Succubus_*." Eames growled when he saw her.

"I think you know who I am." Robert Fischer said plainly. The Young Businessman adjusted his finely tailored suit. A nervous trait.

"Sorry, Mate." Eames said casually "Not a clue." Ariadne took the Forger's lead and shook her head.

"I've never seen you weak ass in my life." Sybil said in a catty tone only a teenage girl can pull off.

"I can believe that last part." Fischer said pointing to Sybil "More importantly though is why I called you here." The Young Businessman quickly took a chair across from his 'guests'. He sighed and looked at each of them. "I had you brought here because I want to know, exactly, what you did to me."

"What are you talking about?" Ariadne asked in a small voice.

"You know what I'm talking about." Fischer said. His voice was suddenly harsh. "You and your team were hired to perform dream extractions on me and who knows what else. You are here to tell me what you did."

"Your confused." Eames said looking casually board. Fischer nodded and looked over his shoulder. Hecate came up behind him. Passing him some photos.  
>"Over three years ago my Father, Maurice Fischer, passed away. I was accompanying his body to L.A. from Sydney." He showed them sharp black and white photos. Ariadne tried to keep her face neutral. It was them, all of them who went on the Fischer Inception. She saw herself, in a white jacket at Customs. Cobb, Arthur, Eames, Saito... Yuseff. It felt like a lifetime ago. Fischer waited for them to respond.<p>

"It's a coincidence that you were all on the same flight?" Fischer asked.

"I take flights all the time." Eames said with a shrug.  
>"That's true." Fischer said taking a folder from Hecate. "Past few years you and your companions have flown all over the world. Japan, Amsterdam, New York, and Rome. All with in the last year." He looked over the folder some more. Judging them. He flicked his eyes over Ariadne.<p>

"Now you, were a graduate student in Architecture at the International College in Paris. When suddenly, you dropped out. Why?"

"I was kidnapped." She said plainly. "Happens to American girls all the time in Europe. I would rather not talk about it."

"I see." Fischer said. "And you popped up back on the grid in Japan a few months later. Living at the same address in Tokyo as three of the seven people who were on a first class flight to L.A.?" Ariadne didn't answer. Hecate had provided the young businessman with all the information he needed. She wasn't going to help him.

"So what?" Fischer said mockingly "Did you all meet on the plane or something? Decide to keep in touch?" He laughed at his own joke. Robert Fischer was a far cry from what he once was. Gone was the soft spoken, spoiled, rich man's son. If anything, his manner now resembled Saito.

"You brought us here to show us some photos from over three years ago?" Eames said rolling his eyes. "Well, whatever gets you off." Fischer smiled. It wasn't a nice smile.

"I brought you here because that day, on the plane, I fell asleep. When I woke up, I felt different. I felt like something had changed in me." He ran his slender well manicured hands over the breast of his suit. "I know you and your team performed dream inception on me. I want to know what idea you planted in my mind."

"Inception?" Ariadne asked. Fischer gave her a hard look.

"Yes, what you and you husband have been doing for the past three years now." He said coldly. "You are the Architect... you build the dreams. Your husband and his friends break into someone's mind and steals information from them. Or they plant ideas in their minds." He sighed looking though his folder again. "Must be a lucrative family business." He continued. "The two of you traveled the world for a year. You pick up and moved often. After the birth of your son, _Alexander_," He put particular emphasis on her son's name. It gave Ariadne a chill "You bought a 4 million dollar home in Saint Cloud, France."

"You guys paid _how much_ for that house?" Sybil suddenly piped up. Breaking the tension and with it, Fischer's hold on them. The Girl looked at the Forger "They don't even have a pool. You guys got ripped off."

"Or satellite T.V." Eames nodded agreeing with the her. Ariadne felt herself start to breath normally again. Robert Fischer had no control over them. They had information he wanted and they were not going to play ball. Sybil and Eames had taken all of Robert Fischer's power away.

"Saint Cloud is very pricey." Ariadne said feeling her voice return to normal. "Owning property in Europe is expensive."

"Can I have a pony?" Sybil asked peevishly.

"Can I have a Russian Bride?" Eames asked in a wheedling tone that mimicked Sybil's exactly

"I'll name her Sugar and I promise I'll feed her, water her and I'll ride her everyday." Sybil said imploringly.

"Ditto." Eames chimed in. Ariadne only got out a brief laugh as Hecate suddenly swung a chair at Sybil's face. The heavy office furniture made contact with the Girl making a loud whack, causing her to start bleeding profusely. Ariadne was so shocked she could only state at Sybil's now broken face. The Girl slumped over in the seat she was tied to, whimpering.

"Now!" Eames yelled. His voice and face a level Ariadne had never seen on him before. "If your looking for someone to rumble with you can start with me!"

Indifferently, Hecate lifted the chair again and brought it over the Forger's head and face with a loud clang. Eames spat blood and Ariadne gasped at seeing the large gash on the left side of his face. He and Sybil were both breathing hard. Ariadne looked at Hecate then. She believed it. Hecate had betrayed them.

"Do _you_ have something else to add?" The Chemist asked her coldly. She had the chair in her hand once more and was prepared to strike the Architect with it.

"Did you kill my husband?" She asked boldly. "My son?" Hecate gave no response to this. No flicker in the eye of remorse or recognition. She was like a robot. "Cobb trusted you. He allowed you into our lives. He trusted you with his Children." Ariadne accused.

"It was apart of my undercover. I needed to get close to you, learn your secrets." Hecate explained.

"Did that include being Cobb's mattress monkey*?" Eames breathed out. His eye was swollen shut and blood was pouring freely from him. Hecate raised the chair again, ready to hit him.

"Stop." Fischer said softly. Hecate stopped her attack before she could reach the Forger. "We'll never get answers from him if you kill him." Eames laughed.

"Oh pretty gun for hire." He said spitting out more blood. Ariadne turned to Sybil who was crying softly. "Tell me, is she keeping your bed warm to, Darling?" Eames asked Fisher.

Ariadne knew what he was doing. Distracting Fisher and Hecate. Forcing their attention on him so that the two women would be left alone. Hecate sensed his plan as well, She raised the chair up and brought it down on the Architect's head. She felt the jolt of it. It felt like her skull had detached from her spine. She saw blackness as she fell into a dreamless void.

"Take them to the guest rooms we have ready." Hecate told the security guards once she and Fisher had left the room.

"I thought I told you I wanted their extractor, Cobb, as well." The Young Businessman said running his careful hands over his suit. Attempting to brush off the unpleasantness he just witnessed.

"Three out of four is not bad." Hecate said evenly. "I had their Point Man to contend with remember. He is... formidable. I had been shot, twice."

"Flesh wounds." He said rolling his eyes. "How do you plan to get them to work for us now?" Fischer asked her. He crossed his hands over his neatly tailored suit. Hecate shook her head. She was wiping the blood off her own hands with an embroidered handkerchief.

"We don't need to convince _them_." She told them "We only have to convince one. Then allow that one to convince her friends."

"What do you mean?" Fischer asked. She smiled.

"The Girl. Sybil. You saw him, he protected her. Put her in danger, she can convince him, and then Ariadne to work with us as well. Sybil, can get the Forger and the Architect to tell you _all_ their secrets." Hecate explained calmly. "We don't need to threaten all of them, only her." Hecate turned around and gracefully walked away.

_*Succubus: A demon who takes the form of a woman and seduces a man only to steal his life force. A Succubus would often appear in dreams. _

_*Mattress Monkey: I couldn't think of a rude but PG way to say that Hecate was sleeping with Cobb. I think Mattress Monkey works well, and it's something Eames would say. _


	5. Chapter 5

To Dwell on Dreams

"_It dose not do to dwell on dreams, and forget to live."_

_Albus Dumbledore, Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone_

"Her name is Circe*." Saito told them once the chopper was in the air. "A chemist who we believe trained Hecate."

"What makes you think she will help us?" Arthur asked ever the pessimist.

"I don't," Saito told him "But she is our only lead." Cobb was looking over the folder Saito had given him.  
>"She lives alone? Doesn't work with any Team?" The Extractor asked.<p>

"She has retired to mostly teaching, or so it would seem." Saito told him "She trains people in the science of dream manipulation." The businessman explained to them.

In the privet helicopter, Arthur couldn't help but be reminded of their first official meeting with Saito. When he had offered Cobb the chance to go back home. How long ago all of it seemed now. The Point Man had left his son and the Children with Yori and the Nanny. They were taking the precious cargo back to Japan later that day. As much as he hated it, Arthur knew Japan would be the safest place for his and Ariadne's son. Satio employed privet security that would ensure Alexander, as well as James and Phillipa would be safe.

"You think this Circe can tell us where Hecate took them?" Cobb asked

"I assume Hecate is working for someone." Saito said

"Why?" Arthur asked.

"If she is truly as well trained as you say, her skills are for sale. I am sure she is employed by someone powerful. Someone who doesn't get his hands dirty." The Businessman told him logically. Arthur had to nod at this. It did make sense.

"She was with us for over a year." Cobb told Saito. "We shared..." The Extractor shook his head.

"Deep cover." Arthur told him.  
>"I have a feeling we are not the first people she has taken advantage of." Saito assured his friend. "Don't worry, we will soon have answers."<p>

**The Island of Crete**

As the chopper landed, Arthur couldn't help but be reminded of the day he had reunited with Ariadne after the Browning inception. It was on this island she housed her sailing ship and he had willing gone away with her. A flood of memories had come over him. The summer heat of the Mediterranean was heavy on them. Arthur found he could barely breath the hot sticky air.

Satio hailed a gypsy cab and instructed the driver to take them to a somewhat sketchy neighborhood. The buildings here had blended and melted together so that one was not sure where one started and the other ended. The streets were tiny and packed with people. The driver refused to go any further. The men gladly walked through the carnival like atmosphere of the neighborhood. Saito observed the people around him with interest, Cobb with carefulness. Only Arthur, with his stern looking face and manner, parted the sea of people without looking at them.

They had arrived at a large wooden house with massive wrap around porches on all three floors. It struck Arthur as more of a hotel then a privet home. Saito nodded to the young boy standing guard at the front door. Inside, the house was lit with daylight only. Kerosene lamps stood on end tables to chase away the darkness when it came. Arthur could feel the stiff stagnant air of a home with not climate control. He had a feeling this house also offered no electricity.

"Are you sure this is the right place?" Cobb whispered to the both of them. There was no one inside the large front rooms. The rooms had fine antique furniture and fading wallpaper. Housekeeping had been somewhat neglected as a tick layer of dust covered everything,

'This place is under a sleeping spell.' The Point Man thought, and then chastised himself for giving into such foolish thoughts as fairy tales. He heard Saito and Cobb make a sharp intake of breath. Arthur turned around and saw his friends holding their necks as they fell to the floor. Behind them stood the boy from the front porch. Arthur did not have time to draw his gun as the boy raised the tranquilizer and quickly fired. Arthur tried to fight. Tried to hold off the powerful sedative that course though his body. His eyes lied to him. Showed him colors and shapes that couldn't be real. He gave over to the drug as his body fell to the old wooden floor.

"Why are you here?" came a seductive voice, thick with an unknown accent. "Tell me, why you have sought me. I already know of course, I want to hear you say it."

Arthur opened his eyes. He was in a beautiful room. Adorned with long tresses of sheer fabric. Red, orange and purple. He was in a comfortable bed. Deep and rich. A form was leaning over him.

"Ariadne?" He asked his mind was confused. What had happened? Where was he? His wife's sweet face appeared before him.

"What is it?" The Architect asked.

"Oh," Arthur sighed at seeing her. She looked oddly different somehow. Her eyes were rimmed with thick eyeliner, her makeup was far more audacious then normal. Exotic looking even. Still, her touch and looks were enough to make him relaxed.

"Are you looking for me?" The shade of his wife asked him.

"Yes." Arthur breathed "Hecate took you. She took you away from us, our son. I have to get you back."

"Hecate?" The Shade repeated, her skillful hands moving over his unbuttoned shirt. Exciting his skin.

"She betrayed us." Arthur said feeling the arousal her touch brought out in him. The Shade moved her body over his. She leaned over him. Kissing his mouth. Arthur was helpless under her. She had straddled him easily rolling her body over his. Her clothing was see though, every curve and hue revealed to him. Arthur embraced the Shade and rocked his hips upward to meet her soft wanting body. He almost cursed the fabric that was between them. The Shade broke away from him, leaving him panting and wanting more.

"It's never a good idea to trust _any_ woman." Circe said looking at Arthur with lustful eyes. "We are a naturally devious breed." His wife's features had melted away. In it's place was a strange looking woman. Still very handsome, but with a clever haughty look. In shock, Arthur jumped away from her and scrambled out of the bed.

"Who are you?" He huffed trying to catch his breath. He had to suddenly remind himself to breath. The Witch laughed, a deep low laugh that tainted her face with evil amusement.

"I am the one you and your men seek." She said raising out of the bed with swift elegant movements. Arthur looked at her, she was glorious. Younger then he was expecting, but still older somehow. Her body was round and full. Her clothing, nothing more then sheer purple and orange fabric that concealed nothing from the Point Man. She held her head high and proudly displayed her near nudity.

"You..." Arthur breathed. In. Out. In. Out. "Your Circe." he said finally feeling calmer. Her looked down at himself. His shirt was undone by her trickery, he quickly began to button himself. Circe pulled a long face.

"Must we end our fun so quickly?" She pouted. "If you like... I can go back to_ her_." Circe's features remolded themselves to that of his wife. Ariadne smiled a wicked smile at him. He couldn't help but be aroused at the sight of her. The longing to touch her. The make-up though not her style and too heavy, brought out a lust in him. A desire.  
>"Stop this." Arthur shouted. "Your not my wife." He looked around the room. "This world is not real." He looked back at Circe. The With had returned to her 'normal' form. "Your a Forger." Arthur said angrily.<p>

In a dream world, a Forger had the ability to adopt any physical trait and mannerism to make the dreamer think she was real. In the real world, Circe could look like anyone. For all Arthur knew, the Witch was a 400 lbs man.

This thought seemed to break Circe's hold on him. He breathed easier. She sensed it. That her abilities had lost some of their power. She looked angry. Arthur looked around the room. A safe was in the wall, it had been opened. Photographs were scattered on the floor.  
>"You stole thoughts from me." Arthur said. The Witch had taken him into a dream. Built a safe for him to hide his thoughts, his memories from her. She broke into that safe and stole them. Run her careful finger over his mind. Circe was not just a Chemist or a Forger, but an expert Extractor as well.<p>

Arthur stood and walked over to the pile of pictures. There were mostly of Ariadne. Her beautiful face. Her body, under his care, those nights when they gave into their desires. His son, his son's feet and hands. Everything precious to him was here.

"You love her _so_ much." Circe said softly coming up behind him. She wrapped her arms around his waist. Arthur didn't flinch away.

"Yes." He told her. "She was taken by your former student, Hecate."

"I know. Hecate was... exciting. She was with me for years. We built worlds together. She was heartless at times. She broke my own heart for sport." Circe confessed leaning her face on Arthur's back. The Point Man scowled. The Chemist and the Witch had been lovers? Somehow, he didn't doubt it. Circe had an appeal that transcended genders. A variable sexual aura that would captivate anyone. Arthur forced the image of a sweaty 400 lbs man into his mind again. Cooling his want of her.

"Will you help us find her? Help me find my wife?" Arthur asked.

"Will you make love to me they way I saw you make love to her?" Circe asked audaciously

"No." Arthur answered coldly.

"Hmmm." The Witch purred. "I'll help you anyway."

Arthur felt himself wake up. He could taste the stale muggy air that lingered in the house. Arthur found this world was sharp, dirty, real. The boy from the front door was sitting at the PASIV device. Cobb and Saito were laying on the floor next to him. They to were coming out of the dream.

Night had invaded the house. A single Kerosene lamp was lit next to them. It cut deep shadows over the still rooms. Arthur felt a childlike instinct to stay in the safety of the light. Circe was not on the floor with them. She could be hiding anywhere. Like a monster waiting to devour them whole if they ventured into the darkness.

"What happened?" Saito whispered. His breathing coming fast and sharp. He and Cobb moved towards the weak lamp light and away from the darkness.

"I think she agreed to help us." Arthur told them.

"I have." Came a voice from the darkness. A figure came from the shadows. Circe was just as stunning in real life as she was in the dreams. Her near nude body wrapped only in a sheer purple wrap. Arthur found himself breathing hard at the fierceness of her.

"Most men who venture into my horror, prove to be vulnerable to the simple seduction of a pretty face and willing body." The Witch told them. "You three however, are not. It's rare to see a group of men desire only their wives and no other." She looked at both Arthur, Cobb and Saito. The Point Man realized that Circe must have tested Cobb and Saito in the same way she tested him. "For this reason, I will help you find Hecate."

_*Circe: Greek, A beautiful witch, who turn Odysseus's men into pigs with her potions. She attempts to seduce Odysseus who is trying to return home to his wife. _


	6. Chapter 6

The Rabbit Hole

_ "Either the well was very deep, or she fell very slowly, for she had plenty of time as she went down to look about her and to wonder what was going to happen next." _

_Alice In Wonderland by Lewis Carroll_

Sybil awoke to gun shots. The war outside was coming though her windows. She jumped

out of her warm bed into the cold air. She was unsure of how she had gotten to this place. Her memory was fuzzy on what had happened after she found herself tied to a chair along with Eames and Ariadne. But this world seemed real.

She breathed in and out. The chill in the air caused her warm breath to puff out white. A cannon blast shook the room she was in, causing the fragile plaster from the ceiling to rain down on her. The Girl quickly laced up the doc Martians she always wore, and threw on a ratty coat. She had to get out.

The streets outside were rubble. A maze of soldiers, live electric wires, frightened civilians, and wild dogs. Sybil ran for the safety of the civilians. Their numbers would hide her. They were a mess of wounded smelly people all speaking in accents and toughs she couldn't decipher.

'I have to find Eames,' she thought 'find Ariadne.' She briefly wondered how she had gotten to this strange place. 'the easiest way to find out if this is a dream, is to try and remember how you got here.' Cobb had always used this as a 'poor man's totem'.

Sybil reached into her pocket, looking for Ganesha*. The little silver elephant was not there. Hecate must have taken their Totems off them when she brought them to Fischer. The Girl sighed. This complicated things. No way could this be real. She couldn't stay here. With the mob of frightened people. They acted like animals being lead to slaughter. She had to wake up. She had to take a leap of faith, that this was a dream.

Sybil saw a nearby solider and walked up to him. When he saw her, he raised his weapon and pulled the trigger. She fell into Limbo.

This world was far more of a fantasy then any other dream world. In it, were the dregs of the broken Limbo she had formed four years ago. The last time Hecate cast her down into the shattered state. Time and distance made no matter. She was alone. She wandered beaches, claimed mountains, and swam endless oceans. Never seeing another person, not even a projection. Before in Limbo, her own projections populated it. She had created her husband, family and other diversions. It had been heaven. Here, time span out. All she had was time. Her body aged, her mind broke. Still the emptiness grew. She had no control over the world she was forced to live in. She tried to wake herself up, but the heavy sedative kept her inside. She felt pain, cold, hunger and fear. She felt all theses things alone. She began to wonder if she ever had gotten out of Limbo before. Cobb and his Team seemed like _they_ were the ones who were not real. An impossible life that was merely a half remembered dream. Only this place existed. Time continued to spin out.

Then she was awake. She was ripped away with a violent force that almost tore her body from her mind. She was awake in a lab. Hecate sitting in front of her.

"That was just a taste." The Chemist said. "That was only 50 years in Limbo." Sybil was breathing hard at the pain and confusion of it. Was this world real? She looked at her hands, no longer old and weathered. She felt a sharp pain on her face, where Hecate had hit her with a chair. The Girl raised a shaking hand to her battered face and head. She felt stitches.

"Do we need to do this again?" Hecate asked.

"No." Sybil said feeling tears well up. The Girl was so fragile now. Broken.

"Good." Hecate said leaning over. She whispered in Sybil's ear then "Next time I cast you into Limbo, you won't be alone. You'll be with down there in a hell I created especially for you. You'll be beaten by gangs of projections. You'll be raped every day. This will happen for at least a century. And you wont even have the escape of death. Now tell me... do I need to do this?"

"No." Sybil said her voice shaking. She knew Hecate could do it. She could destroy her in a few moments. All with only the press of a button.

"You will tell Eames and Ariadne to do what we tell them." Hecate said kindly. As if she was being generous. Sybil nodded and managed a weak smile.

"Yes." The Girl said. Her face a wreck of blood, stitches and tears.

Eames paced in the 'cage' he found himself locked in with the Architect. He had woken up in what could only be called a cage. Perhaps the more PC term was jail cell. But it was a cage. His face had been hastily stitched back together and the dried blood not even cleaned away from the wound. He and Ariadne had been given nothing for the pain Hecate's attack had brought.

"How long has she been gone?" Ariadne asked. The Forger shook his head

"Don't know. She was gone when I woke up." He said. Sybil was not there with them. Where she had been taken and for how long, they had no way of knowing. Ariadne felt at the back of her head. Rough stitches were hidden in her long dark hair.

"Are you sure your alright?" Eames asked. Ariadne laughed.

"As long as I don't look as bad as you." She said with a smile. The Forger grinned at her. He opened his arms so she could get a good look at him. It was a move that said

'how can you not love all of this?'

But the work Hecate had done on him, left his face a disaster. There was a long ugly gash on his right cheek that had been hastily sewn together. His eyes were black from the bruising the Chemist had given him.

"Not the first time a beautiful woman chained me to the floor and beat me up. First time I didn't enjoy it though." He confessed.

Ariadne laughed. She had to laugh, if only to keep from crying. Her body longed to hold Alexander. His warm little body fit hers so wonderfully. She was born to hold him. She curled her legs to her chest and rested her face on her knees. Trying hard not to worry about Arthur and their baby.

She knew the Point Man would never stop searching for her. She knew that he would protect their child at all costs. He was so proud of his son. She could see it in his eyes. He was proud of the healthy baby that had survived Braker's attack. Proud of her for being his mother. The birth of their son had bonded the two of them so much closer. Yet... Alexander's birth had changed everything about them.

"Your getting quite the collection of scars." Eames commented. Ariadne looked up at him. He was standing over her, looking at the wounds on her head.

She looked at her arm. The wound she sustained in Morocco had healed nicely. Only a thin white line. She loved that scar. Arthur had rescued her form an attack of COBAL's men. He had stitched the knife wound himself. She sighed back into the memory. His strong, capable hands. Making those quick, careful stitches. Every time she saw this scar, she saw his hands. Gently holding her arm down. His eyes looking up at her. She loved this scar.

"I suppose." She said sadly

"Not exactly what you signed on for when Cobb asked you to draw some silly maze right?" Eames said inspecting the newest of her wounds. She laughed.

"Not even a little." She sighed "But I wouldn't trade it."

Eames took a seat next to her. His presence was a comfort.

"What about you?" She asked.

"What about me, Darling?" He said looking ahead.

"Why do you stay? Your not married to anyone on the Team, not related to any of us." She pointed out "I'm sure you can make more money as a freelance Forger."

"True." he said "But this life has a hold on me." He chuckled "One gets lonely in that other life. I've always felt at home with all of you. We all work well together." He shrugged. "I guess it was an easy thing to stay. Besides," he grinned "Who would annoy that husband of yours if I'm not here?"

The sounds of a heavy metal door creaked. Sybil walked in alone. Eames was quickly on his feet as he walked over to the bars. The Girl looked awful. Her face a road map of abuse. The dried blood had been streaked off with fresh tears.

"Eames." The Girl gasped coming up to the cell. Ariadne was at Eames side as the three of them made contact with hands and arms though the barrier of the bars. "They... told me... to tell you..." Sybil choked. A fresh wave of sobbing was racking her body. Eames looked at the girl horrified.

"What did they do to you?" He asked in a steady voice.

"Please!" Sybil screamed. New tears distorting her face. Ariadne tried to clutch her hand but Sybil jerked away. Wrapping her arms tightly around her own body. "We have to do what they say!" She yelled. "We have to give them what they want!"

"Sybil," Eames said holding out his hand to her. "Tell us what happened." His voice was even and calming. Not allowing the terror of the Girl to corrupt him.

"If we... if we don't... don't do what they want..." Sybil cried. Sobs breaking her body. "Hecate will put me in Limbo again!"

The Girl sank to the floor and curled in a ball. Eames and Ariadne were powerless to comfort her.

"I can't go back there." She cried pitifully. "Not again."

The sounds of the heavy metal door boomed in the room overpowering Sybil's crying. Hecate and Fischer had come in. Hecate looking smug.

"You Bitch." Eames breathed at her. "Leave her alone! Leave them both alone!" He looked at Fischer.

"I was the Forger on your inception. I'll tell you everything you want to know."

*_ Ganesha: Hindu, Remover of Obstacles, God of Success_


	7. Chapter 7

The Witch's Spell

_When you cried, I'd wipe away all of your tears.  
>When you'd scream, I'd fight away all of your fears.<br>And I held your hand through all of these years  
>But you still have,<br>All of me._

_My Immortal by Evanescence_

Inside the Sleeping House, Arthur, Cobb and Saito sat at a massive dinning room table. Circe was at it's head. Arthur noticed the tick layers of dust covering half of the impressive antiques. The boy had brought them drinks and food. None of which the men touched. There was something evil about this strange woman. Her abilities in the dream world were like nothing they had dealt with before. It was as if she existed only in a dream. That she had come into the waking world to inhabit the sleeping house. Arthur could not imagine her existing in the world outside of this place.

A single lamp illuminated the darkness of her elegant (if neglected) dinning room. Circe's own appetite was ravenous. She drank red wine with stake. It's preparation so rare, blood flowed freely out of it. It gave the Witch an animal like quality the men were afraid of. When she had finished eating. Her normal self was replenished. The color in her face came back. Her eyes were bright again.

"Tell me about Hecate." She purred softly. She had leaned back in her opulent high back chair. The sheer purple fabric did nothing to conceal her well shaped breasts or dark nipples. The Witch seemed uncaring about how much of her body was revealed.

"Over a year ago," Cobb started "She and I met. My old chemist... Yuseff... had gone off on his own. She admitted the she had worked for COBAL. A company were not on good terms with."  
>"I'm sure." The Witch laughed. "Please go on."<p>

"She was brilliant. She had been working on a compound to stop a dreamer from falling into Limbo." Cobb said. Circe's eyebrows raised.

"How impressive." She said sounding not at all impressed.

"It worked. We tested it. Several times on ourselves and our friends. A fellow Extraction Team. I trusted her, brought her into our Team. She was with us for over a year. We never suspected... anything."

"Tell me," The Witch asked. She abandoned her seat and walked casually around the room. "This magic compound that arrests your fall into Limbo, did it stop working?" The Men looked up at her. She smiled. "I had created such a compound. Eventually, the mind became immune to it's effects. The mind's way of protecting itself." She laughed "That woman never created _anything_. She only knows how to take."

"She stole the compound form you?" Arthur asked as Circe walked around the table to him. Her long fingers graced the exposed part of his neck. The sensation of her flesh on his rippled though his body causing a sudden excitement that terrified him.

"Of course." She said with a smile.

"Who dose Hecate work for now?" Arthur asked desperately.

"She has been employed in the New World*. By a shy price, who has become a man since his father's death." Circe said in a poetic tone.

"Who dose she work for?" Arthur barked raising to his feet. He had grown tired of this game.

"Robert Fischer." Cobb said suddenly. The Extractor had been lost in thought over the Witch's confounding words. "He hired Hecate to take our people?"

"The Price only desires answers." Circe said with an easy smile "He will get those answers but he will not find peace. Hecate will use your people for her own needs. She will brake them. Like she has broken so many others. You don't have much time."

"Where are they being held?" Arthur asked feeling all the air leave his lungs.

"In the Prince's great palace, and where else?" Circe told them. Cobb and Saito stood up. The time had come to leave this place.  
>"There is still one more thing." came the Witch's voice. Her power made them halt their retreat. "There is the matter of my payment." Circe said. "A trivial concern." The boy, whom everyone had forgotten about shot them with the tranquilizer again. Arthur felt himself fall heavily to the ground.<p>

The Witch was standing over him. A menacing smile on her face.

Arthur found himself back home. Not the home in New York, Japan or Saint Cloud. He was aboard the ship "The Minotaur" Ariadne was with him. They were in the little bed they shared on that ship. She was sleeping. Her face peaceful. He fell into this world so easy. It felt so real and all his senses told him it was his Lady next to him. She was so beautiful there. He could not resist kissing her awake. She opened her big brown eyes and smiled at him.  
>"Good morning." She said sweetly. "Last night was... interesting." He chuckled and felt embarrassed.<p>

"I have to apologize." he said "My behavior was totally unacceptable. Most ungentlemanly." He admitted but smiled down at her.

He was leaning over her. His Lady was on her back, safe in his arms. She tried to conceal her smile behind her hands. He pulled her hand away to kiss her.

"Yes you were." She giggled. "If I knew all I had to do to get you to behave that way was to wear a sun dress..." she started but lost her courage. Her face flushed hot.

"Tell me." he said. She seemed shy.

"I guess, I should have bought it a long time ago." She admitted.

"That dress got you into trouble last night." He teased, kissing her. She smiled sweetly.

"Well, am I forgiven?" She asked innocently. The question stirred him.

He felt a jolt go though him as his arousal for her awakened the rest of his body. They were both naked in their little bed. No energy left from their heavy lovemaking the night before to put clothes back on. He could feel the heat off her body as he kissed her. Her back arching against him. Making her breasts meet his bare chest. The contact of flesh on flesh, reminded him of something. The same way the Witch's fingers had felt on his neck. It felt nothing at all like Ariadne's soft and delicate skin. This skin cast a feeling foreign to him.

Memories came flooding back to him. The Architect, in a Moroccan market being chased by COBAL's men. Making love on this boat all day long. An assassin in his New York apartment. A wedding with snow falling. Ariadne, swollen with their child. Seeing his precious wife near death. Ariadne smiling at him, holding their perfect baby. Alexander's face that night he first held him. He had a son. Ariadne was his wife. How could he have forgotten? This world was not real.

Arthur jumped away from the shade of the Architect. He was breathing hard as she morphed into the form of the witch.

"You can hardly blame me for trying." Circe said sitting up. The covers fell away from her chest revealing her bare breasts to her would be lover. "You are just far to tempting. I have not seen a man such as you since the days of the great heroes*." She admitted coyly.

"I told you no." Arthur said. A feeling of being violated shook him into a sober reality. Circe sighed.

"As you wish." She told him "In case you can not save your Lady, you are welcome back to me any time." She leaned over to him. Her body molding to the bed. "I could show you ecstasy that mortal woman of yours is to terrified to attempt. Pleasures, your afraid to give her."

"No." Arthur said shaking his head. This woman was not real, she no longer exuded sexual desire for him. His needs feel only to Ariadne. He had to get her back.

He awoke to a dirty room in the sleeping house. Daylight had invaded the rooms. The sunlight had bleached out the wallpaper, and fabric on the furniture. The furniture was moldy. Eaten away by rats. This place no longer resembled the fine home from their dinner with Circe. It was mere shell. Arthur jumped to his feet. The floors creaked and groaned under his weight. Down broken and missing steps, the Point Man found Cobb and Saito. They were sleeping on the torn and dilapidated couch.

"Hey." Arthur said shaking them awake. The two men jumped back into consciousness.

"What..." Cobb asked. "What happened?"

"She took us into the dream again." Arthur told them. He had a feeling Circe did not bother with Cobb and Saito this time. They looked around the sleeping house. Empty and eerie, even in the day light.

"Where is she?" Saito asked.  
>"She's long gone." Arthur told him "I'm betting that we have been asleep since we got here. The dinner, everything was a dream."<p>

"A dread with in a dream." Saito said raising his eyebrows. "Impressive, but not original." Arthur nodded.

"She was..." Cobb was searching for the words.

"Probably a 400 lbs man getting his jollies off us." Arthur said. He knew placing this idea in their heads would force the Extractor and Businessman to let go of the Witch. To see her as nothing more then an illusion.

"So what now?" Saito asked

"We check out all of Fischer's holdings." Arthur told them. "Look for property big enough, and privet enough to hold our people." The men left the sleeping house and it's ghostly inhabitants. They stepped back into the crowded market. Into the real world.

*_ The New World, a historic reference to the Americas_

*_ The Great Heroes: Achilles, Hercules, Theseus and Odysseus_

** One of the things I really loved about Inception, is Cobb being in love with his wife. I think it's really a wonderful thing to love you spouse physically and mentally. These are easy things to do in the beginning, but grow harder as time goes on. **

** I think Nolan and his wife Emma based Cobb and Mal's love on their own. Cobb and Mal seemed to be lovers first, husband and wife second. Its a beautiful thing. **

**I promise this will ****not**** be the last time we see Circe. She is like a bad penny.**


	8. Chapter 8

No Good Deed

"_An Eye for and Eye, Leaves the whole world blind."_

_Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi_

Eames told Fischer everything. It went against the very nature of what he did. Normally, it was his way to forget details of any job. He explained how he was recruited by Cobb to help with the Inception. That he posed as Browning and suggested the idea of breaking up his Father's company. The it had been Cobb's idea to make the inception a cathartic experience. One that the young man would feel empowered by. Fischer listened eagerly. Asked few questions. Eames had omitted Mal shooting the young businessman, feeling it was to complicated. Eames finished with the cathartic experience of Maurice Fischer not wanting his son to be like him.

"Your idea?" Robert Fischer asked. Eames nodded.

"We needed a simple idea that would grow naturally in you mind. We felt an idea that was positive was much more powerful then an idea that was negative. At worst, you would have left the experience a more confident person." The Forger told him.

Fischer seemed to absorb this information. He finally stood.  
>"Cut them lose." He told Hecate.<br>"Sir?" She asked.

"You heard me." The Young Businessman said adjusting his suit. Fischer seems to no longer care about Eames, inception or even wanted to be in the same room with them.

"We have to get out." Easmes told Ariadne later. They were not sure if it was night or day. The place where they were being held had no windows. They had no idea how much time had passed.

Sybil was sleeping. She had curled up on the large and only cot. The girl was sandwiched between the wall and the Architects body. She had finally cried herself out. Pure exhaustion taking her away.

"No kidding." Ariadne said in a whisper.

"No I mean it." Eames said solemnly. He was sitting on the cold floor, watching the door. "I told him everything he wanted to know, he told her to let us go."

"Why didn't she?" Ariadne asked.

"Because, Hecate is a liar. Everything she has ever told us has been a lie. Why should we be the only ones she lies to?" Eames almost barked at her. Frustration over the situation finally breaking him. Ariadne put a hand up and looked over at the Girl, still sleeping. "She will use Sybil to manipulate us. She has plans for us. Fischer was just her way in."

"Okay, so what do we do?" She asked.

"Have you ever heard of Game Theory*?" Eames asked.

"Course, just surprised you have." Ariadne said. Eames chuckled.

"Be ready. Were getting her out."

When Hecate and the guards came for them, Fischer was nowhere to be seen.

"Time to go?" She said

"Your letting us leave?" Ariadne asked. Daring to hope.

"Certainly not." Hecate told them "We are leaving here."

"Why?" The Architect asked. Hecate sighed.

"The French Authorities have a lead on this place. A rather meddlesome Detective has made it his business to find you."

Eames nodded at Ariadne as they roused Sybil. They allowed Hecate and two guards to walk the out of the holding cell, down a long hallway. They walked though a maze of corridors, climbed stairs, till they surfaced in a refined house. The windows outside showed that it was late afternoon. The sky an over cast gray. Eames looked out the window to see they were surrounded by trees. He pretended to stumble. The guard stopped next to him. The Forger attacked.

Eames normally gentle and relaxed manner belied the skills that rivaled even Arthur's. He very quickly disarmed his guard and took his weapon. Ariadne had attacked Hecate who had turned to fight the Forger. It was a futile attack. Hecate was stronger and more skilled then the petite Architect. Ariadne was quickly and roughly thrown off. Her body crashing tot he floor. Eames shot the first and second guard but not before Hecate reached him and grabbed his arm. He _heard_ rather then _felt_ his arm brake. He dropped the gun as Hecate pulled his arm up and dislocated it.  
>"Run!" He shouted at Sybil. The Girl cast one last horrified look at Eames and Ariadne before turning to flee out the doors. Before Hecate could go after her, Ariadne was on her again. She had jumped on the Chemist in yet another brave but futile attempt to slow Hecate down. Give Sybil more time.<p>

Sybil ran. Her legs pumping hard. Her heart, bursting at the seems of her chest. Sudden sharp pains in her side. She couldn't slow down. Eames and Ariadne might be dead now. They had sacrificed their own safety to give her a chance. To give her the chance to escape. The woods outside the mansion were a maze of green and brown. She could not be sure she was not going in circles. She jumped over fallen trees, ran though branches that scratched her face. She knew Hecate would be pursuing her. She knew the Chemist would be after her.

"Eames!" Ariadne yelled. After Hecate had thrown her off the second time, She had given the Architect a swift kick to the abdomen and taken the two guns. The Chemist had run swiftly after Sybil. It amazed Ariadne how fast she was. The Architect fought her own pain and crawled over to the Forger. He was moaning on the floor. Breathing hard. His arm was sticking out at a funny angle.  
>"God." She breathed afraid to touch him.<p>

"Find a phone." He managed to say over the twisting agony of his injuries.

She nodded and looked around the opulent house.

"I have to leave you." She said "I'll be back." It was a stunning house. More like a museum then a privet residence. She had quickly reached the front alcove and saw a car waiting there. No one was attending it. There were no guards around. The place was empty. After Fischer had gotten the information from Eames, he seemed to have left. She ran back to the Forger.

"I found a car!" She panted. Fear and a need to hurry filling her veins. "Come on!" She helped Eames to sit up. The Forger wincing and moaning at the pain.

She helped him to the front lobby to the waiting back sedan. There were no key in the ignition.

"Guards must have them." Ariadne sighed. She didn't want to go back to the house. "Or Hecate dose." She sighed. It was far more likely the Chemist would have the keys.

"Tear that panel off." Eames breathed. He pointed at the steering column with his good hand. Ariadne ripped the molded plastic off exposing a nest of wires.

"Take the two red wires" Eames panted. Ariadne did as he instructed, "Strip them, use your teeth." She quickly tore the flesh off the red wires and exposed their metallic center.  
>"Now... twist them together." Eames said.<p>

With a shock of delight, the car roared to life. She barely had time to buckle Eames and her self in before the car cut tread marks in the white gravel driveway.

Sybil had stopped running. She had no idea where she was going and she was certain Hecate was close. She had stripped her tall doc martian boots (the ones Ariadne hated) and threaded the dark laces across two trees. She could see Hecate then. Despite the falling darkness. Despite the black clothing, she saw her. Hecate was running, like a terrible beast. A beast coming for her. She let Hecate come for her. The Chemist never saw the trap the girl laid for her. She charged Sybil when she saw her, run ing right in between the two trees. The laces worked. They caught her right in the throat.

She didn't die, but awoke to Sybil tying her up. Using the laces to secure her arms behind her, wrapped uselessly around the tree that caught her.

"Let me go." The Chemist breathed. "_Now_."

"I don't have to listen to you." Sybil said humbly as she finished her work. Hecate struggled against her restraints. "I knew you for what you were. I always did." She explained. "I_ always_ saw you."

"Untie me." Hecate screamed. Blood was coming from Hecate's neck where the strong laces had caught her. Sybil removed Hecate's shoes. She removed a knife from her belt and without hesitating, cut a deep gash on the Chemist's face. Hecate screamed out. Sybil seemed uncaring about the morbid act she was perpetrating. She moved on to other parts of the Chemist's body. Cutting, not deeply, her arms and legs. Her exposed feet. When she was done, Hecate was breathing hard.

"Don't worry," Sybil said innocently. As if consoling the Chemist. "You wont bleed to death." The Girl held the knife and looked around the darkening woods. "I think it will be animals that kill you, eventually. Them... or exposure." She shrugged. Sybil left her then, marching slowly and purposefully away. Ignoring Hecate's screams.

It was a long driveway till they finally reached a street. Ariadne was not used to driving and found her panic state made it harder. She was constantly looking over her shoulder. The woods surrounding the lonely street were massive and all looked alike. She had no idea where they were or how to get out. This was worse then a dream. This was worse then any maze. She didn't know if she was going the right way to a city or not. She felt she was getting more lost. Eames was moaning in pain and Sybil... and Sybil.

Like a ghost, the girl wondered out of the woods and into the street. Ariadne barely missed her.

"Sybil!" She screamed screeching the car to a halt. The Girl looked like she was in a daze as she slowly turned around and looked at looked at them. Ariadne rolled down the window and shouted to get in. The Architect could not believe their good luck. Sybil slowly complied. As if she had all the time in the world to escape their captures.

"Where's Hecate?" Eames gasped

"I lost her." The Girl said plainly.

Ariadne was not stingy with the gas peddle as the car roared away on the street. Night fell. The Architect saw police sirens and knew they were for them. She didn't stop. Instead she only slowed down and allowed a convoy of twenty police cars, alive with lights and sirens, to pass them. She had to get Eames to a hospital. He was about to pass out from the pain. She did not have time to waste answering questions.  
>"I think were in America." Sybil said dully, looking out her window at the police cars. "Licenses plates all say Oregon."<p>

"Aw shit!" Eames complained as Ariadne drove in the opposite direction the cars had come from.

_*Game Theory: Mathematics, An individuals choice depends on the choices of others. Player succeeds based on the other players. Most famously seen in 'A Beautiful Mind'_


	9. Chapter 9

Crash

"_God, if you can hear me,_

_Crash this Train."_

_Crash this Train, Joshua James_

The congenial little French Detective strolled the massive Fischer estate. Astucieux looked over

the abandoned home. Doors left wide open, lights on. No one was home. Night had fallen fully on the brightly lit house, rimmed with the flashing red lights of police cars. The local police had gladly escorted him to the Fischer home on the remote grounds.

"Miss-Sure?" The Police Chief said in bad French but trying. The Man approached the Detective. "No one's here."

"They must have left here rapidly." the Detective mused. "Lights left on, doors wide open to the elements." He looked at the deep gashes cut on the drive way "They fled most quickly."

The local police were tall and wide. Like something out a myth about Giants. The Little French Detective felt dwarfish compared to the Americans. Still, they were polite enough. Even if he did speak better English then they did.

"No, the people we seek were here." Astucieux reasoned

"Sir!" Came the shout of a deputy. "Incoming chopper!" The young man pointed to the sky. They all craned their necks upward to see the search light from a large helicopter. They heard the characteristic patting and humming grow louder as the circulating wind picked up. The large chopper touched lightly to the ground. It looked like the kind of vehicle that was clearly capable of international flights.

"Who are they?" The Police Chief asked Astucieux

"My guess..." The Detective said casually, "is they are looking for the same people we are." Astucieux smiled and nodded to himself as he saw Arthur, Cobb and Saito exit the large helicopter. They ignored the local police when they saw the French Detective.

"Monsieur Astucieux?" Arthur asked. He was breathing hard. The Team had gone though Fischer's holdings till they found an isolated estate in Oregon that would be perfect for hiding people. They had left for America with in the hour and flown all day. When they finally reached Oregon, Arthur felt his heart leap into chest when he saw a line of lit up police cars. She was here. He knew it.

"Ma Femme?" He asked. His french had gotten batter. He didn't want the local police to understand them. Detective Astucieux seemed to understand.

"Laissez-nous pas de la gossipers*." The Detective said understanding.

Astucieux told the Point man about finding information about Fischer, that the Young Businessman had hired Hecate to bring part of Arthur's Team in to him.  
>"But, I suspect that you know all of this." The Detective said with a smile. "Information retrieval and all." Arthur said nothing.<br>"She's not here is she?" The Point Man asked looking at his shoes.

"We think they were moved, and recently." Astucieux told him

"Why did Monsieur Fischer take your family and friend?" The congenial little Detective asked. Arthur did not answer. The Detective sighed.

"I suppose if I were in the business of dream extraction, I would have many enemies as well." Astucieux mused. The Point Man looked up in surprise. The Detective shrugged and put a finger to his nose. Arthur's former doorman, Sam, used to do the same thing. It meant they shared a secret. Arthur felt himself smile.

"Arthur!" Cobb's voice cut over the noise. The Point Man and the Detective turned to see the Extractor. Cobb was holding a cell phone.  
>"Their at a hospital, in the city." The Extractor shouted.<p>

In a nearby city, the chopper landed gracefully on the hospital roof. They had beaten the police cars who, never able to mind their business, were on their way to them as soon as Cobb got the breif call from Sybil.

"How long have they been here?" Arthur asked. He, Saito, Cobb and Astucieux had all left the roof and were on their way to the ER.

"Sybil didn't say." Cobb explained for the third time. "She just called my phone and said they were here."  
>"Well, are they hurt?" Arthur barked<p>

"She didn't say, Arthur." Cobb told him. "She hung up before I could ask any questions.  
>"Where's Hecate?" Arthur asked. Cobb sighed.<p>

"She didn't say." The Extractor told the Point Man. The ER was a maze of nurses, beds and noise. It was packed with people in varied degrees of distress and pain. Arthur had no idea where to start. Many of the beds had drawn curtains. He was so close, he could feel it. He could feel her.

Without warning, he saw Sybil out of the corner of his eye. She was walking, dream like to a small alcove caring a water pitcher. She didn't even look around her or else she would have noticed the Team. Her face was bruised and had a long gash of dark stitches. The Point Man felt his heart race at the sight of her. Arthur and the others did not say a word as they followed the Girl. She opened a crack in a hospital curtain and slipped inside.

The Point Man approached the enclosure and tore it open. Eames was laying on a hospital bed. His right arm lashed securely to a heavy mid-evil looking brace. His face, a horrible mess of swelling, bruising and even more stitches then Sybil. He was sleeping. To his left, the Girl placed the water pitcher on his bedside table. Sitting on his right...

"Ariadne." He breathed. His wife turned around when he had come in. Her face looked untouched by the abuse Eames and Sybil had suffered.

"Arthur." She said simply. He embraced her, his breathing coming fast in relief. She wrapped her arms around him. Her body fitting into his perfectly. She stood on tiptoe so she could rest her chin on his shoulder. "How did you get to the States so fast?" She asked finally.  
>"We were just at the house, Fischer's house." Arthur explained. His lips suddenly on hers. His hands holding the back of her head. Bringing her close to him. He kissed his wife forcefully. Never wanting to break off his embrace of her. Forgetting the now tiny space was crowded with people.<p>

She didn't ask how he knew Fischer had them. He didn't asked what happened to Hecate or Fischer, or how they had escaped. There would be time for that later.

"Alexander?" Ariadne asked, coming up for air after his kiss. Arthur nodded.

"He's fine. In Japan, with Yori." Arthur assured him.

"Which is where we need to go right now." Cobb broke in. "Local police are on their way." Eames came awake, although drugged, as Cobb and Arthur helped him into a nearby wheel chair. Ariadne took Sybil's hand as Saito rolled the Forger on the elevator to the roof.

"I'll keep them busy." Astucieux told them. The French Detective held the elevator door open and nodded at the Architect. "So lovely to finally meet you, Madam."

The chopper flew them to Los Angeles, in another hours, they were in the air again. Saito had a newly minted privet corporate plane ready.

"In case I had to transport clients." Saito explained when they saw the large aircraft. It was bigger then most privet planes and far more luxurious. Ariadne was sure Arthur would know what kind of plane it was but didn't ask as the men helped the Forger into one of the comfortable leather seats. The engines of the plane were making loud noises that told her they would be taking off soon. Saito closed the cabin door as Sybil strapped in next to Eames. She had not said a word the entire time from the hospital to the airport and didn't look like she would anytime soon. The Girl curled up in her seat. She and the Forger were very quickly asleep. Ariadne sat next to Arthur as the the plane gained altitude.

"Are you _sure_ Alexander is alright?" She asked him quietly.  
>"Yes," He said running a hand over her face. "I hated leaving him, but I had to find you." She nodded understanding, he kissed her gently as they felt the plane level off.<p>

"What happened to you?" He whispered. She took a deep breath, told him everything. Waking up to see Hecate and Fischer, Sybil being tortured, Eames fighting off the guards, Sybil's escape to the woods.

"What happened to Hecate?" Arthur asked

"Sybil said she lost her in the woods. I honestly don't' know. I just had to get Eames out and to a hospital." She confessed.

"You did the right thing." Arthur said kissing her hands.  
>"How long were we gone?" She asked. "I don't know how long they had us."<p>

"About a week now." He answered. She nodded.  
>"When we land, I need to see my son, take a hot shower and eat a big dinner." She confessed with a laugh.<br>"Well, we have ten hours before we can see him." He told her. "But I can help you with the other two."

The fancy corporate jet had a complete bathroom that impressed the Architect. Her husband ran a hot shower for her and helped her undress.  
>"What happened here?" He asked feeling the stitches on her head. They had been hidden by her dark hair.<br>"Hecate." She said simply. She felt embarrassed that Arthur showed no signs of leaving her to shower alone.

"I can shower alone." She assured him trying not to blush.

"Not a chance." Arthur said with a slight smile. She giggled as he shed his own clothes. The need to touch her was to great.

In the shower, the hot water rained down on them. After intense kissing, which left her breathless, Arthur gently washed her hair. He took responsibility to washer the rest of her body as well. It was a job he did slowly and thoroughly. Planting soft kissing on each area of her body after her had cleaned it. His time with Circe and his time away from his true love had left him to excited to not be naked with her. She was a vision. Her body soft and familiar to his touch. The warm water was raining on them both as he leaned her body to rest on the wall. His body did the rest. He lifted her leg around his waist and plunged himself recklessly into her. Ariadne gasped at the sudden penetration. She warped her arms around him as he thrust into her body with an abandonment she had not felt since she had first gotten pregnant. His mouth was all over her body. Moving from her lips to her nipples as if she were a buffet and he was only their to sample her.

"Just.. just stay my wife." She heard him groan as his thrusting increased. "Just stay my wife." he said again. She didn't understand what he meant. Why wouldn't she stay his wife? She pushed the thought out of her mind as he continued to take his pleasure form her.

Arthur felt himself release in her suddenly and his body start to relax. He was breathing hard. The need for her body and skin had been to great. He didn't care if this was real or not. He could no longer resist. Ariadne was kissing his neck with soft lips as he cradled her in his arms. He caught a glimpse of them in the bathroom mirror. It reflected himself and the lovely imaged of Ariadne. Her nude body molded to his own. Seeing them there, in the mirror, he sighed. It was real.

Arthur dressed in the clothes he had worn before and found a set of pajamas that were surely meant for corporate gifts for her to put on. The plane had a small galley where they fixed a small dinner. Saito and Cobb were sleeping in the front of the plane. Ariadne woke Sybil up to offer her something to eat. Eames was still sleeping soundly thanks to the pain killers. The Girl ate silently, took her own shower and changed clothes. She was soon back asleep before the plane reached Japan.

It was still night as the Team reached Tokyo. The sinning of the globe had not caught up with them. They took another chopper to Saito's privet mansion in the country side. It was a magnificent house that rivaled Fischer's. The inside was lit up in expectation as the chopper landed. Eames had been dropped off at a hospital to attend to his figurines. Sybil had wanted to stay with him and Saito had stayed with the both of them. Cobb, Ariadne and Arthur had gone to retrieve their Children. Yori welcomed them into her home. It was quite as she chowed Cobb the pleasant little room James and Phillipa had been sharing. They were both curled up together in a double wide bed. A habit of theirs when their Father was away. The Extractor gazed at their beautiful sleeping faces. One always loves their Children a little more when their asleep. He brushed away a lose stand of hair off Phillipa's face and wondered what they were dreaming of.

Ariadne and Arthur took no such passive approach. Alexander was sharing Shin's nursery. Under the constant protection of a capable nanny. The Baby awoke sleepily as his Mother took him out of his crib. He didn't cry and only allowed the Architect to hold him close to her body.

Ariadne was so grateful to feel his warm little body fold into her own. Her husband stood by her side. He ran on of his large hands over his son's head as he pulled them both into his arms. The feeling of her warm squirming baby, her husbands strong capable body. These were feeling and sensations she knew to well. They were her totem. She _knew_ she was awake.

* _"Let us step away from the gossipers."_


	10. Chapter 10

Ever After...

"_Fairy tales are more then true: not because they tell us dragons exist,_

_but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten."_

_G.K. Chesterton_

**Saint Cloud, France... a week later**

Eames had been released after only a few days. His arm was still confined to the heavy brace he now wore. The break had been severe enough to caused real damage. Ariadne had insisted the Forger recuperate at the large home in Saint Cloud. Arthur didn't care for the idea, but according to Ariadne, Eames had truly saved their lives. It was surely the least he could do. Arthur wanted to move as soon as possible. This house was known to people. Ariadne would not hear of it. She wanted to stay. Arthur conceded for a while. He quietly started hunting for homes somewhere else.

For Eames's comfort, as well as to entrain Cobb's Children, Arthur had a satellite TV installed. It's modern intrusion broke the elegant flow of the old fashioned home. Arthur hated it.

It was raining to hard outside to go out and play. Hot, heavy, July rain. The blended families were camped out in the parlor with the large TV. The spoiled invalid, Eames was sitting in a comfortable recliner. A bowl of pop corn on his lap. James and Phillipa were laying on the floor. Hypnotized by the cartoon on the screen. Cobb, lounging in a chair next to them. Arthur was holding his wife in his arms as the two of them were stretched out lazily on the sofa. Their son sleeping peacefully in his bassinet. Bliss.

Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck were fighting in French. The always familiar silly voices sounded strange in this language.

"La Saison de Canard!" said Bugs

"La saison de Lapin!" Screamed Daffy.

"You know, I just realized something." Cobb said with a rare laugh. "Eames your Bugs, and Arthur your Daffy." Cobb said pointing to the two cartoon characters.

"As long as I'm Bugs." Eames said with a chuckle.

"Why am I Daffy?" Arthur asked feeling hurt.

"Cause your always mad." Phillipa told him. Not taking her eyes away from the screen.

"I'm not always mad." Arthur tried to say calmly as Ariadne laughed. Arthur sighed.

"Well Eames _dose_ make a good Bugs. He's always dressing up like a girl on the job anyway." Arthur said. Ariadne laughed again as did Cobb.

"Yes, but I'm always a _hot_ girl." Eames said not missing the opportunity.

Sybil had not taken part of the family that day. She spent most of her time, stowed in her little room.

It was late, Ariadne had been working on the paperwork necessary to re-enroll in school that fall. Arthur had just put the baby to bed. He never mentioned to his wife that Cobb had taken the night shift with their son. The Point Man had plans.

"Time to go to bed." He said rubbing his wife's shoulders. She sighed.

"I still have to wade though all of this. It's the only time of day I can do it." She told him, feeling her eyes start to twitch with tiredness. Arthur kissed her neck. Making certain to leave his breath to linger on her skin.  
>"I <em>said<em> it's time for bed." He said in his most formal voice. Ariadne felt a blush creep over her as she allowed him to pull her out of her chair. He turned her around and pulled her body into his. With a long forceful kiss, he told her who was in charge, for the moment.

"Now," He said breaking off the kiss. His wife looked up at him, helpless. "Go to our room. I left a present there for you. Put it on, nothing else, remember my rule about panties." he said, his voice husky and stern. As if she had done something wrong. She nodded, tembeling, and quickly went upstairs to their privet suite.

In their privet bathroom Ariadne opened the pink and black box she found on their bed. It had come from a very exclusive lingerie boutique in Paris. Perhaps even a custom job. She felt her fingers fumble over the rich black ribbon that held the heavy box together. The package was deceptive, inside was nothing but a sheer white fabric. Fitted only with a wrap to show that it merely draped over the body and nothing else. Ariadne breathed out. Surely she had to wear more then _this_. She might as well be naked. A soft knock on her door let her know her husband was outside, waiting.

"Put it on." He said in a somewhat angry tone. She couldn't help but feel a panic come over her. She was terrified of putting on this 'outfit', she was terrified of not putting it on.

"Arthur," She said "It's... it wont cover anything." She admitted shamefully.  
>"I said put it on." He growled though the door. Ariadne found herself stripping. The see though white fabric slid over her skin like water. Cool to the touch, making her nipples rise up against it.<p>

Arthur awaited his Lady to appear to him. He had striped and was slowly working himself. Thinking of her. He had chosen white for the fabric. Not the colors of Circe. His wife was pure, only white would do. She was taking to long. He was about to leave the bed and force open the bathroom door when she appeared to him.

She was luminous. The shine of the sheer fabric reflecting off the light. It made her look like an angel. Her arms were crossed over her body. Attempting to hide herself from him. He smiled at her, she was so nervous. Despite being his lover, his wife, the mother to his child. She was still modest about her nudity in front of him.

"Move your arms." He ordered. "I want to see all of you, hands behind your back." She took a few seconds to comply. Eventually letting her hands fall behind her back. He worked himself harder at the sight of her body. Proudly presented to him.

"Good." He breathed. He wanted to take her right away, yet he delayed it. Allowed the sensation to stretch out. "Now, come here." He growled. Ariadne seemed afraid.

"Arthur..." She tried to say

"I said come here." He said harshly. She hesitated, but soon approached him.

Ariadne had forgotten the thrill of the Point Man when he was like this. He was normally gentle and content in their love making. This side of him was exciting because it was rare and controlling of her independent nature. She found herself so drawn to it. She stood before him, feeling his hard eyes on her. His breathing rapid, his hand, working. He thrust his free hand under the sheer fabric. Claiming the hot space between her legs. She tried to stay standing as his fingers rubbed her privet secret place. She gasped as his expert hands manipulated her. She could feel the hot wetness break out under his efforts. Arthur abandoned his own pleasure then, he stood before her and began his work on her body. The sheer garment she wore hid nothing from him. His hands never leaving her hot center as his teeth nipped her nipples, his lips kissed her belly, his breath caressed her neck. She was moaning from pleasure as she realized she was grinding on his hand. He laughed hoarsely.

"What makes you think you deserve satisfaction?" He breathed in her ear. Teasing her.

"Arthur please." She panted. His tempo on her increased. "Please!" She suddenly screamed. His hand was over her mouth to quite her. She nodded and he released her. In seconds she was thrown down on their bed. He took her then. Plunging himself into her. She was ready for him, she was soaking wet as he slid into her. Yet the shock of his fullness made her gasp. He drove himself in deeply. So much so that she tried to get away from him. Arthur pushed himself in deeper. An almost sadistic need to fit all of himself into her tight center. She was gasping now. Barely able to take it. He rocked gently inside her, not ever wanting to leave this place. This place he was claiming. Her inner walls began to spasm as she climaxed on him. He tried to hold back, hold back his own release as she panted and moved with him. His efforts were useless. He groaned with anger as he released himself in her body. His breath was coming quickly as he collapsed on her.  
>"Are you alright?" He asked, feeling himself returning to normal.<p>

"Yes." She said. He could sense she was smiling. Her breath was just as ragged. He leaned over her, his beautiful wife, he never wanted another woman. How could any woman compare?

In the morning, Arthur was gone. She had showered, dressed, feed the children and baby. Cobb, Eames and Arthur had most likely gone off somewhere. Around noon, a massive bouquet of fifty white roses arrived for her. A simple card, in her husband's old fashioned script said simply:

_Ariadne,_

_ Please excuse my behavior last night. It was unacceptable. I was not a gentleman. I intend on not being a gentleman again tonight. I love you. _

_Arthur_

She smiled and placed the beautiful flowers on the dinning room table. That evening the men returned home. Talking about a new job and their plans for it. After dinner, Arthur kissed his wife gently.

"I see you got my flowers." He said.

"I did." She said "What makes you think your forgiven?" She said mockingly

"Are you being a tease?" He asked. "We both know what happens to a tease." he said kissing her neck. She tried to remember to breath. Upstairs in their room, on their bed was a new pink and black box.

It was a few days later that Arthur's lawyer had called. Robert Fischer had apparently committed suicide in New York last week. The criminal implications against him in regard to the kidnapping had made him run. No longer able to leave the country without being arrested, he took the easy way out.

"Some easy way out." Cobb had said. The Team were all in Arthur's office when the Point Man broke the news. "Jumping off the Brooklyn Bridge like that."  
>"Can't say I'm sorry." Eames said rubbing the stitches on his face.<p>

"Did they find a body?" Ariadne asked. Like Braker before him, she chose to remember Fischer as the somewhat sweet, spoiled young man she had met in the dream.

"No." Arthur said. "NYPD thinks he'll... float up, eventually." Ariadne took a deep breath.  
>"Who's going to tell Sybil?" She asked<p>

"Dose she need to know?" Arthur asked.

"Yes." Cobb said immediately. "It will give her closure. She might come back around after knowing he's gone." The Team all exchanged looks.

"I'll do it." Eames finally said.

"One more thing." Arthur said as Eames stood up. "My Lawyer said Robert Fischer had assets and holdings worth over $100 million. It seems he reworked his will a few days ago. He left Sybil all of it. Every penny." The Team exchanged shocked looks. "I'm certain Browning will do everything possible to contest the will, but if he fails..." Arthur let the sentence drop.

"Trying to buy, atonement. Won't save his soul." Eames said coldly. "Were not going to tell her that last part. I don't want her feeling in debt to Fischer." Ariadne nodded.  
>"We can make something up." She said. "If the money dose come though, we can put it in a trust. Say it came from a job we worked. That it was her share, invested well." Arthur nodded.<p>

"_Very_ well." The Point Man added

"She never has to know the full amount. We can have it distributed it in an allowance." The Architect told him.

Sybil took the news with a certain amount of quite indifference. She asked a few simple questions, then never spoke about Fischer again.

Later that night, she crept into the bathroom. It was late, the house was still. She had hidden her 'kit' in her room, but clean up was always easy in the bathroom. She was only in her underwear as she rubbed the rubbing alcohol over a spot on her calf. With a lighter, she ran her favorite strait edged razor over the enticing flame. She no longer had to pray for the courage to bear down. The half healed marks on her caves were proof enough she had the ability.

She slowly bore her weight of the razor on her flesh. It sunk in. A beautiful stream of red was released from the prison of her skin. She gasped and smiled at the pain. Her breathing sped up as endorphins erupted though her body. A smile fell on her face then. She found herself relaxing.

She noticed she was bleeding heavily now. Her expert hands cleaned the wound. Wrapped and dressed it efficiently.

Happy with her progress. Hoping it would scar, knowing it would. She cleaned her beautiful blood off the floor, sink and took the blood stained towels back to her room. She had a few of them that she had to wash now. Ariadne could not see them. She had to hide them. Sybil thought if she lived alone. She wouldn't have to hide. She could keep the towels, just as they were, forever. A sense of relief filled her as she climbed back into bed. She was quickly asleep, in a dreamless void.

A Hunter was in the woods when he found the body of a woman. She had been lashed to a tree with her hands wrapped behind her. Helpless. He clumsily approached the body. Blood was everywhere. Her feet were bare and blue and gray from the exposure. Animals had been biting at he body's bare feet. Flies were circulating. An awful smell.

Out of morbid curiosity he pushed aside her long dark hair to see her face. Her head hung limp and cold over her chest.

The Hunter touched her face when she jumped back into life. The Hunter scrambled back from the woman he thought was dead. Every zombie movie he had ever seen flashed in his head. Her heavy labored breathing letting him know she was _very_ much alive.

**Thank you to my followers and reviewers. This story has stayed alive only because of all of you. As you can see, I have more plans for our heroes. Cant let them be happy for long. **


End file.
